Flogged for the Fairgrounds

A Large, Huffed, Thunderin' Rat

In the beginning, we intended to build a lumpy-sounding big-block that would rumble the pavement while it cruised the fairgrounds of the Western United States. What we ended up with was one shag nasty mega motor that not only shakes the earth, but also produces some mighty impressive horsepower numbers as well. In doing so, we made careful parts selections, like with all build-ups. To further the cause, we called in the folks at Speed-O-Motive to help coordinate and assemble this new 540-inch monster. Keeping its intended purpose (and supercharger) in mind, we arrived at 8:1 compression. Everything went according to plan, as the Speed-O guys quickly showed us their capabilities. This shop builds lots of engines, powering everything from restorations to racing and marine applications.

Once the parts pile was complete, things progressed at a rapid rate, thanks to Speed-O-Motive's state-of-the-art machining department. And through the build-up, we only experienced one bummer--the brand-new DTS dyno was still being plumbed and wired, so we had to quantify the numbers out at the Vrbancic Brothers shop, located about 30 miles east of Speed-O-Motive. No big. Check it out, as we go through the build-up sequence and you're sure to see why this monster shakes the pavement.

4

During the prep and machining process, Speed-O-Motive clearanced the bottom end for the Scat stroker crank, bored the cylinders (from 4.250 to 4.500 inches), and align-bored the Dart "Big M" block (PN 31273344).